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<title>Cards on the Table (Risking it All) by Chubbykatsudon (MamaSuga)</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28852437">Cards on the Table (Risking it All)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MamaSuga/pseuds/Chubbykatsudon'>Chubbykatsudon (MamaSuga)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Wiedźmin | The Witcher (Video Game), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types, Wiedźmin | The Witcher Series - Andrzej Sapkowski</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, I can only manage happy endings, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, but not too much Angst, geralt is a vampire, i promise you it's the softest ending, in love with jaskier, my heart is too weak for anything else, no one dies, talks of terminal illness</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 08:34:29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,706</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28852437</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MamaSuga/pseuds/Chubbykatsudon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Geralt had always been reluctant to let anything good into his life. </p>
<p>But any time he managed to let himself have something nice it found a way to backfire. And the moment he finally let someone get close to him, he gets blindsided. </p>
<p>“I’m dying.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>117</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Cards on the Table (Risking it All)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello! </p>
<p>My gift for the very patient vampirian on tumblr for The Witcher Secret Santa! </p>
<p>I do wish I could have hit more notes for your requests, but I hope you still like this just the same. I promise you the angst is there but the ending is so happy and so sweet that it's worth getting there. I hope you have a wonderful New Year! </p>
<p>(Title lifted from All of Me by John Legend)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Geralt had always been reluctant to let anything good into his life. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For hundreds of years, Geralt walked the continent in mixed intervals of solitude and companionship, finding solace in the most unlikely of places only to discover if he stayed too long, it was always ripped from him. He did better </span>
  <em>
    <span>alone, </span>
  </em>
  <span>as most vampires did, only reaching out to the members of his Coven to know if they were still alive.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But any time he managed to let himself have something nice it found a way to backfire. And the moment he finally let someone get </span>
  <em>
    <span>close </span>
  </em>
  <span>to him, he gets blindsided. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m dying.”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jaskier had been a constant in his life for the past four years, the longest he’d stayed anywhere.  He had such a bright personality -- Still does -- and managed to pull Geralt in reluctantly. It was hard to turn down those glassy blue eyes, unafraid of the amber staring back at him in disbelief. He’d drag him into the city to try anything new and different, things he would never go to on his own. With the cover of darkness, they would share secrets, things they both kept buried deep, but felt safe enough to let go. Geralt remembers the night he let Jaskier see his fangs, let him touch them, and explore. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of what?”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>Then that tender exploration bubbled up between them and what started out as friends tumbled into something warmer, something rosy.  Geralt tried to keep him away, tried to warn him it was </span>
  <em>
    <span>dangerous </span>
  </em>
  <span>to want someone like him, but that didn’t stop Jaskier. He knew it wouldn’t. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t want it to. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Does it matter?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Geralt let himself slip back into the present, still mulling over the news. Was it really news? He should have known the entire time that something </span>
  <em>
    <span>so wonderful </span>
  </em>
  <span>would be yanked from him. </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It always happened. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess not.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jaskier stretched out in the bed next to him, all limbs and lean muscle. He swung his feet over the bed and slid on his boxers, walked over to the window, and cracked it opened as he lit a cigarette. “That’s not fair, I’m sorry…” He leaned against the wall, shoulders drooping as he let out a sigh. “I only mean… I’m dying regardless… It doesn’t matter what I have. It won’t change the outcome.”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>Geralt moved out of bed himself, choosing to remain bare but joined Jaskier by the window. “You’ve never told me. How come?” His hands were light on his arms, rubbing softly. It was all he could do to keep from crushing the best thing that ever happened to him in his arms. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A small smile tugged at Jaskier’s lips and somehow it appeared he realized what Geralt wanted. What they both wanted.  He opened his arms and let the older man melt against him. “I guess… When we met all that time ago... You looked so lonely, and the last thing I wanted to do was hurt you. So… I kept it to myself.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In the end, it didn’t lessen the blow. They both realized it but neither one spoke it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wanted to ask what they were supposed to do, now that mentally it felt like he was hurdling through time. Nothing would be enough, no amount would please him, he would always be left wanting one more moment, one more laugh, one more time to just </span>
  <em>
    <span>breathe.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fear started creeping up in the back of his throat. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Geralt had been so convinced he knew exactly how everything was supposed to go, how it </span>
  <em>
    <span>usually </span>
  </em>
  <span>went. In those quiet ticks of time where they stood together, bodies practically fused together and every point of contact, he ran through every lonely scenario in his mind. He ran through them so many times over that he never in his wildest imagination let himself dare to dream up what came out of Jaskier’s mouth next. </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“Make me like you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Amber eyes widened, staring in shock, unblinking, into the quiet seriousness in Jaskier’s watery depths. “... You’re serious,” he murmured, taking one hand and cupped his jaw. He noted how not even his bottom lip protruded out as it did sometimes. </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“Of course I am. You think I go into something without much thought?” He paused, then put his hand on Geralt’s chest, “Actually, shut up, don’t answer that.” They shared a laugh between them, foreheads touching as they both recalled the many accounts of Jaskier’s poor planning. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know there are risks involved, don’t you?” Geralt couldn’t lie and say that the idea of turning Jaskier before had never crossed his mind. He knew how he felt, to be by his side longer? That would be a rare gift. But he couldn’t possibly sugar coat the facts for him. If it was something he really wanted to do, he needed to know everything.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The greatest risk I could ever encounter would be losing a chance to spend my life with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Geralt felt something deep in his chest tighten. “Jas…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know I am absolutely out of my mind for wanting this, I know.” He took Geralt’s hand before continuing. “But honestly, what do I have to lose? Either I go in a hospital bed surrounded by a few dear ones, watching them all weep at my unfairly short existence.” He looked away, seeming to force the image from his mind. “Or I can tell destiny to take a hike and go on </span>
  <em>
    <span>my </span>
  </em>
  <span>terms.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tears started spilling down his cheeks, and before he could dig the heels of his palms into his eyes, Geralt took them in his own. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I also… I also know there are so many others out there that would </span>
  <em>
    <span>never </span>
  </em>
  <span>get this chance, but like, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I have it.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It’s true, many people die far before their prime, lives cut too short and ripped from families’ embraces. He had seen a great deal of it in his lifetime. “If destiny gave you the blessing of continued life… What would you do to repay it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another stream of tears broke from his eyes and tripped down his flushed cheeks, occasionally splattering on their chests. “I’ll do what I’ve always done. I’ll sing.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Something in the way he declared it, the way he held his head up and told Geralt he would </span>
  <em>
    <span>sing, </span>
  </em>
  <span>struck something deep that rocked him to the core. He stayed quiet for a long moment, weighing over the options. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was the option of letting Jaskier’s body do as it planned, watching him fade out of existence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Or </span>
  </em>
  <span>he could take things into his own hands and </span>
  <em>
    <span>change </span>
  </em>
  <span>it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rarely were people like Geralt and Jaskier given such opportunities to change the hand they had been given. An opportunity to also tell destiny to leave off so they could carve out their own slice of happiness. They could find a small home somewhere, a place far, a place of their </span>
  <em>
    <span>own</span>
  </em>
  <span> where they wouldn’t be living on borrowed time: Him with his limit of good things and Jaskier with his limited time. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was hasty, Geralt knew, hasty and reckless, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>within reach. </span>
  </em>
  <span>And he knew if he tried to change Jaskier’s mind he would be unsuccessful. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a risk they were both willing to take. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright.” Geralt finally said, pulling Jaskier back to the bed with him. Jas followed close, his own body vibrating from nerves and excitement. There wasn’t a bit of hesitation as he laid back on the pillows, surrounded by comfort not only from the warm blankets but another warmth he </span>
  <em>
    <span>hoped </span>
  </em>
  <span>his eyes were giving off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Judging by the way Jaskier reached up to pull him into a kiss, they definitely did. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They exchanged looks one more time. Jaskier smiled his wide smile that crinkled in his eyes and kept his arms wrapped tightly around Geralt. And just as his fangs descended and broke the skin, the last words he breathed rang the loudest in his ears:</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thank you.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>~*~</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just outside a little tourist town sat a small house on the coast. It housed two vampires, one with amber eyes as powerful as the sun, and one with glassy blue eyes that harbored so much strength. They sat outside on the beach, wind from the sea tossing their hair around, and dug their toes in the sand. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When they first met, destiny had been unkind to them, having them lead lives they were terribly lonely. But then one night they made a choice to change their destiny. They refused to let what was given to them be the defining factor and carved out their own path. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The blue-eyed vampire stretched up, all long limbs and lean muscle. “Mmm, I think I am ready to go in. How about you, Geralt?” He reached down to offer his hand, grinning, “Aren’t you getting tired?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Geralt looked up, smiling at the other man with him. He nodded as he made to stand, then pulled him into his arms. Without much effort, he scooped him up to carry him bridal style towards their home. </span>
  <span></span>
    <br/>
  
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“Geralt!” He cried out, wrapping his arms around his neck. But he wasn’t afraid, he knew he was safe. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I may be ready to go inside but I am far from tired, Jaskier.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jaskier giggled, kicking his feet as Geralt leaned down and kissed him, then carried him inside and shut the door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Laughter and soft sighs spilled out from the open windows and cracks in the walls, falling apart as the waves caught them. They moved together, the most tender expression of love they could manage, fingers in hair and mouths fused in a heated kiss. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once their breathing settled to normal and the winds settled down, Jaskier rolled close to Geralt and dozed off, blissfully dreamless. Geralt, however, stayed awake a bit longer, idly running his fingers through messy chestnut curls. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In the stillness, he started thinking that perhaps destiny wasn’t as horrible and cruel as he had once made it out to be. Perhaps it was the real reason he was here in this moment, sharing his life with someone who brought him joy every single day. And if that was true, he was </span>
  <em>
    <span>destined </span>
  </em>
  <span>to have this happiness for the rest of his days.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for taking the time to read this little fic. It means a lot to me :)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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